Oldboy Redband Trailer: If You Had A Hammer,You'd Do The Same Thing...

Spike Lee swings for the fences in this trailer for his remake of Park Chan-wook's knockout 2003 film. It looks as if Lee has got the insanity and tension down pat and yup, this also looks to be as violent as the original with a few twists. As noted on the other (and NEWER) DAF, Spike may also be going for that elusive Oscar nomination with this one and it looks like Josh Brolin is certainly swinging that hammer with "nominate me!" passion. Will this one end up a proper remake that nails it (much like Martin Scorcese's The Departed did when it blew up at the box office and Academy Awards), or will it be one of those "why the hell did they even bother?" reworkings that ends up dumped onto video before slowly dying in cable rotation? I can't tell at all, but I'm hoping for the best. My man Spike needs a nice hit every now and then...

Spartacus Legends: I Won't Be Playing This... But YOU Just Might...

This is ONLY a test post. I'm still here, folks. I'll probably condense all of these DAF:TG posts into the NEW DAF at some point soon - stay tuned.

Fist of the North Star 2: Kenshiro's Rage Trailer: Heads Will Roll Again... or Explode (Your Choice)...

I'm one of the few reviewers who liked the first game, so I'm looking forward to this sequel quite a lot. Granted, developer Omega Force isn't reinventing the wheel here, but the level of depth here will be outstanding for fans of the anime and manga, that's for sure. The combat has been made smoother and faster, I'm liking the visuals a lot and overall, I'm locking this down as a sleeper when it hits the PS3 and Xbox 360 next year. If there's anyone out there who doesn't like this, well, I'd say some Fist fans would say "You are already dead." or something close. Of course, those are the annoying fans with too much time on their hands who SHOULD be enjoying the games they like without letting others get in the way of their enjoyment, but hey - everyone needs a hobby, I suppose...

GTA V Trailers 1 & 2: Yeah, You Know You'll Be Playing This One For A While...

As usual, Rockstar is set to impress gamers worldwide with another incredible Grand Theft Auto experience. As usual, it's hard to take your eyes off of the amazing visuals (feel free to pause the videos to check out the hilarious signage the art team is putting up all around. As usual, the game is still in progress, so don't expect to play this until next spring. That said, as usual , expect awards galore, some fantastic voice acting and a soundtrack absolutely packed to the max with some great and varied music and talk radio chatter we'll all be grooving to. It's going to be a fine 2013, that's for sure...

BioShock Infinite "Beast of America" Trailer: A Delay of Game Is All For The Better, I Say...

 

Some gamers are irked that Irrational Games isn't rushing this out the door this year, but I say leave them be so they can make a great game even better. Of course, it has a LOT of hype to live up to, so let's hope all the team wants to do as far as the story and gameplay go get DONE and done right. That and hell, i want to see the developer get tis finished so they can perhaps do something cool with the Vita one of these days...

Dishonored Interactive Video - Choose Your Path to Revenge

 

Lovely. Pop this open as a full screen video and "play" it a few times for best results. Yes, yes, as good as this looks, the actual game will be a great deal more compelling and fun, but this tiny taste of what's coming next week should have your wallet lighter within a few clicks. Arkane and Bethsoft have one of the sleepers of the year, i say. Don't disappoint them by not buying the game, as they have a masked assassin on the payroll and you don't. Even if you did, I bet he or she couldn't transform into a swarm of rats or toss a wire trap that could slice you to jerky within seconds...

Hitman Absolution "Introducing The Kill" Trailer: Making An Assassin For The Masses...

 

I've been quietly keeping an eye on Agent 47 for a while now and his latest bit of not quite silent but deadly antics are very slick indeed. Developer IO Interactive has been taking some flack from the uber-core fans who want everything the same as it was in the earlier games down to almost no innovations or breathing room for newbies. While that may work in keeping sales down to that base who wants a game only they can play, this IS a business and all the people working on the game would probably want to see it do well among more types of gamers. Sure, it's "catering" to the masses on an epic scale, but hell, if you're bitching about this, you're not a REAL assassin anyway and if you are, you're certainly not sitting on your ass playing a game all day, right? That said, some new players with zero attention spans and no idea about how to dive into a game that's not telling you how to do everything will be left staring at the crowds and crying because they haven't a clue what to do or where to go (even after the briefing and otherwise well-done hint system).

Feh, you can't stop those folks from gaming at all - you can only hope they snap those unused areas of their brains into action with a great game like this.

Dishonored: The Tales from Dunwall (Episodes 1 - 3) - Graphic & Novel

And here you go - all three Tales From Dunwall installments to get you all set for Dishonored when it hits stores on October 9, 2012. This is one of the games I've been looking forward to because of its single player focus, fantastic art direction and overall fresh take on some familiar gameplay elements.

 

PS3, PC or Xbox 360, folks - definitely give this one a shot. Arkane Studios isn't yest a household name amongst gamers (unless they happen to have been around for Arx Fatalis and loved it as much as I did), but this is a game that will definitely be remembered (and copied) for years to come...

XCOM: Enemy Unknown Interactive Trailer: Decisions, Decisions....

Firaxis has pretty much silenced anyone doubting they could bring XCOM back as a solid tactical reboot, and this "Interactive" trailer is just a brief taste of what's in store for the hardcore RTS/RPG fan looking for a good reason to camp out in front of the PC for too many hours at a time. I'd actually LOVE to see this get onto the Vita at some point, as that console needs a much better class of strategy game than what's currently available for it. Army Corps of Hell? Yuck - give me this game and I'm a happy camper (as will be a LOT of other Vita owners.

Dead Space 3 Eudora Gameplay: Almost 17 Minutes of Pure Hell (In A Good Way, Silly!)

I'm absolutely NOT one of the whiny crowd crapping on Visceral's decision to add OPTIONAL co-op play to this sequel. I'm a fan of all the Dead Space games (yes, even Dead Space Extraction on the Wii and PS3, which did an excellent job at making an on-rails game really compelling, thrilling and scary). Hell, it will make me a lot less freaked out If I know I can have someone else to hind under the damn couch with when things get a wee bit too frightening. Anyway, this one's on track to be a big smash, provided the dev team can overcome the hurdle of dealing with that pissy part of the fan base that just doesn't like anything changing in their favorite games. Granted, if multiplayer is shoved in and makes for a bad time for all, then yes, you can indeed bash both SA and Visceral all you want - I'll be one of the first to wave the flag if they blow it.

TGS 2012: God of War: Ascension Trailer: Kratos Is A Badass In Any Language...

 

I actually got a chuckle from this trailer because the narrator sound like Linda Hunt, but speaking fluent Japanese. How do you find someone to do that voice work, i have to ask? I'd imagine SCE Japan had assorted actresses listen to Hunt's performances from the other God of War titles and try to emulate her scholarly tone. Or perhaps there just so happens to be one voice actress in Japan who just so happens to have that dark voice all nailed up? Stranger things have happened, folks... like multiplayer coming to a Gad of War game. Which, by the way, I hear is surprisingly great in a few areas. A I've said elsewhere, Sony's not going to let the PS3 die a crappy, quiet death with no games of note filling up store shelves as they push the console aside for a newer, more expensive upgrade.  2013 is going to be a key year for PS3 on a number of fronts, I say...

TGS 2012: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Trailer: A Few Too Many Cuts Above The Rest

 

Fan favorite developer Platinum Games has really gotten the hang of making anything they do quite the killer experience, but Revengeance looks to take them to new levels of action and excitement. With not a Snake in sight, this might be one of those games that convinces some of the Raiden haters out there that he's not just a throwaway joke character. I still remember laughing for too long at the grand joke played on us back when Metal Gear Solid 2 went from Snake's story to the Raiden show (to interesting results, to say the least!), but unlike a lot of die-hards, I gave Kojima a break because it was clear what the man was up to. In any event, I'm looking forward to diving into this plsu the upcoming Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes when that one gets some sort of showing here in NYC. Hey, Konami... don't forget about me this time!

TGS 2012: Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2 Trailer: Pow! Wow! (Ow!)

 

I really loved the first game, warts and all because it captured the tone a spirit of the film and anime perfectly. That familar Sengoku Musou gameplay slowed down deliberately, the loads of extra characters to unlock and the ridiculous replay value made this a great guilty pleasure worth going back to multiple times. The game obviously sold well enough to get this sequel made, so I say give it a try if you're looking for something really out of the ordinary in a beat-em-up. Of course, some critics won't "get" this game one bit, but fans of the show of manga should be all aboard this particular post-apocalyptic train, I say...

No, I'm Not Dead - Just Otherwise Occupied...

That said, things will get back to more regular posting here shortly. I'm wrapping up a big project (non-gaming) and working on some reviews for the newer DAF blog, so that's been keeping me from adding as many videos and such. Also, I'm working on a few things for the new blog that will do a bit better at linking to this one, as I can definitely use more traffic here. As Google seems to think that all blogs with "mature" content aren't worth their time to promote, I'm more or less beating a dead horse until I get the other DAF a bit more fully functional. Plan A is definitely in motion, folks - stay tuned for future updates...

Sleeping Dogs Gameplay Updates: Don't Mess With Mrs. Chu + More Action Stuff

 

Here are some more peeks at United Front's upcoming action game set to hit stores on August 14. As you can see, that Mrs. Chu is no lady to trifle with on any level, that's for sure. While I'm really liking the level of polish the developer has put on their baby, I'm not thrilled with the whole "Gun Fu" thing used as a terminology, as it reminds me of that awful movie Equlibrium (sorry, kids, it really stinks despite all the action scenes) and the stupid "Gunkata" that reminded me too much of the even more awful film, Gymkata, but with a hell of a lot more swords and firearms. Fortunately, it looks like the game will defy the silly stuff an old fart like me remembers too much of, so yeah - you should probably buy it no matter what I say. Just avoid those movies I mentioned and you'll be all right...